To P.F. Chang's or Not to P.F. Chang's in Manila?

P.F. Chang's, the popular American Chinese Restaurant of Philip Fleming and Philip Chiang, finally opened its first branch in Asia. With 200 restaurants across the US, and branches in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Kuwait and UAE, it also now calls Alabang home.

P.F. Chang's is a modern Chinese bistro that offers MSG-free and gluten-free, made-to-order, Chinese comfort food. Its ambiance is pretty similar to other modern restos in Manila, except for its signature replica statues of the Chinese terracotta warriors and horses.

The restaurant is also known for its highly-trained staff who can help you navigate through the menu and provide sharp recommendations.

(Tip: The American trainers are still here in Manila; try your best to order from them. The local waiters do not seem to know the menu yet and tend to answer everything is good.)

Great Wall of Chocolate (P395). Six rich layers of frosted chocolate cake topped with semi-sweet chocolate chips, served with fresh strawberry and raspberry sauce.

I'm not impressed with dessert that is all presentation but does not deliver on taste. We have better chocolate and dessert options here in the metro.

★ Mango Cheese Wontons (P150). Mango and cream cheese in a wonton wrapper. Fried to a golden brown and served with chocolate sauce.

If you are looking for a unique dessert or just want the right sweet ending, try these wontons filled with sweet cheese and mango.

Ninong Spanx and Raphael enjoyed the night at P.F. Chang's.

Overall, most of the spicy (Hunan-inspired) food were really good, and you'll be safe with ordering the best sellers. However, it has to improve its service to make the P.F. Chang's Manila experience a memorable one for its diners.

Time will tell if it will be a big success or be seen just as an overpriced American Chinese restaurant.

Full Disclosure: The Ultimate Philippines brothers (with Spanx, Ivan Henares and Ivan Man Dy) were invited to meet Mr. Philip Chiang on the public opening of P.F. Chang's in Manila. They gave us a birthday treat for Aidan's 7th birthday. :)

P.S. It's not that kid-friendly -- staff is not trained to handle children and the restaurant gets this "dark bar" ambiance at night. If you are dining with kids, it would be better to eat there during lunchtime (or wait for a little while before trying this resto if you don't want to be frustrated).

One more thing... I'm not a fan of restos that make people wait outside even if they have reservations; the place can accommodate 200 people, so is that just their way of giving the impression that there are a lot of customers waiting?

Comments

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I've been to one in the Sacramento area. It's definitely not a restaurant I'd go back to. I'd rather go to to my inexpensive unpretentious San Francisco neighborhood chinese restaurant. Keyword: pretentious.

Very steep price. No doubt about it, I like their signature dishes but its just overpriced. From the looks of it, the serving is not that good. I think if panda express will open here (I am hoping) i'll just go there.

Food are not memorable, considering its prices it's over hyped. It's not surprising why such a popular western chinese restaurant finally only having its first asian branch, i've tasted far better variant of its dishes in local chinese restaurant at far cheaper prices.

Hmmm.. after giving it some thought, they really might be on an uphill climb to gain a certain market. They are, after all, an American based company serving their version of Asian food in a region that has a greater Asian influence than them.

Maybe their bistro-like experience will be patronized by a more high-end cosmopolitan clientele :)

The food and place is great. Though with plenty of cheaper and local alternatives its got competition. I think people will go back for the service and the location. Not the food. The food is just the afterthought.

From the looks of it I'd rather go to Binondo for my Chinese food fix. This may work in other countries but it definitely gets clobbered in this part of the world. Anton is Pinoy and he doesn't like it much based on his descriptions. I'm Chinoy and I've been to SG, HK, Taiwan and China and I'm definitely not going to let my mouth near any of the food there.

Superb photos!
We used to order out from PF Changs when we need a Chinese food fix and we cannot drive for an hour to our favorite Chinese food place. The soup is good, the lettuce wrap is good... the food is not greasy. They have become more expensive though. I'm surprised that PF Changs entered the Philippine scene. I don't know if it's worth a night out place for me. I have the PF Changs loyalty reward card but I rarely use it these days.

Hi Anton! I have a gradeschooler too and so I'm on the lookout for kid-friendly restos. Just curious, is the PF Chang in Calif kid-friendly? Because I'm wondering why the local branch offered a birthday treat for your son? Your photos showed the place is geared towards the adult clientele.

I dont think its worth it to try this chinese resto. I dont see any special about there food just a bit of modern twist maybe.
Like what other people said above, i rather go to some chinese resto that also serve msg free food and reasonable price.
I suggest you try Golden Leaf in Quezon city.

people, pf changs is not an authentic restaurant but rather more of a fusion chinese, so don't expect it to be 100% chinese or even compare it to authentic chinese food. read again, their dishes are inspired by chinese cuisine but not completely as the cuisine itself. just my two cents

My siblings and I ate at PF Changs in the Philippines. Given that its quite a famous restaurant worldwide, we were looking forward to satisfying our taste buds. I ordered Beef La Sichuan (for 2 persons) for 355 pesos. What I got was a measly dish that could not even satisfy one person. The beef was about 20 or 25 grams so puny, and tasted exactly like beef jerky that you can buy off the shelf in hongkong souvenir shops. The beef jerky was meticulously tangled up in a mix of vegetables and drizzled with sauce in a feeble attempt to mask its inadequateness. It really was more like a starter salad than a grown man's meal. Only I like my salad fresh, not with processed beef jerky. For that price, well you won't expect me to come back anytime soon.